Invincible Zhengde

Chapter 46 Emblem Merchants
Zhu Houzhao must not find a big businessman, because there are people behind the big businessman. In the current Daming, the government and the businessman are definitely not talking about it. If you want to do business, you must not have an official background.There are even many businessmen who are simply officials. What are these people Zhu Houzhao looking for?
No matter what you do, it mainly depends on your own needs. Only the one that meets your own needs is the best.

What Zhu Houzhao was looking for was just an agent, not a powerful businessman.

"Don't worry, Your Highness, this servant will definitely find someone who will satisfy His Highness!" Liu Jin said hastily on the side, with firm assurance all over her face.

Zhu Houzhao just smiled, and then said: "Then do it! Don't let your highness down."

Liu Jin went to work, but Zhu Houzhao didn't care much about this matter. No matter who Liu Jin was looking for, Zhu Houzhao was confident that he would be under control. Even Zhu Houzhao didn't have to come forward in person, Liu Jin would do.Now Zhu Houzhao can probably understand why the emperor likes to use eunuchs, because it is so easy to use.

Even if something goes wrong in the end, the eunuch can just take the blame. It is as easy to use as the Legalists, and the price-performance ratio is even higher.

Zhu Houzhao is very busy these days, because his father Zhu Youtang is not very busy. Ever since he learned that Empress Zhang had a child, Zhu Youtang basically went back to Kunning Palace every day, and he went back early.Things like correcting the test book are left to Zhu Houzhao. As long as there are special things, Zhu Houzhao can report them.

Zhu Youtang has the posture of other emperors in the Ming Dynasty, handing over to the eunuch for approval, but now it is Zhu Houzhao who approves Zhu Youtang.

For his behavior, Zhu Youtang found a high-sounding reason for himself, which is the cultivation of his son.Zhu Houzhao expressed strong protest and opposition to this, but under the suppression of his parents, this protest and opposition could only end without a problem.

Under such circumstances, Zhu Houzhao couldn't even think about being busy. He had to attend classes and practice martial arts, and he was like a spinning top.

After practicing martial arts that day, Zhu Houzhao was resting and drinking tea. Zhang Yong ran in from the outside. After seeing Zhu Houzhao, he said quickly: "Your Highness, Your Highness, Your Majesty let Your Highness go over."

Zhu Houzhao nodded and stood up. Although he didn't know what his father was looking for, Zhu Houzhao was still going to take a look.

"Your Highness, Your Highness, it's not Kunning Palace, it's Qianqing Palace!" Seeing Zhu Houzhao going to Kunning Palace, Zhang Yong hurriedly reminded him behind him.

Zhu Houzhao was slightly taken aback, he didn't intend to blame Zhang Yong, but felt that this was a bit strange, because his father spent most of his time in Kunning Palace these days, why did he go to Qianqing Palace to summon him?Although he didn't know why, Zhu Houzhao's expression turned serious.

In Zhu Houzhao's view, something happened, and it was not a trivial matter, it should be a major event.

When he came to Qianqing Palace, Zhu Houzhao knew what was going on, and all the people in the palace had been cleared out.There are only three people standing in the hall now, except for his father Zhu Youtang, the remaining two people are Yang Peng, the owner of Dongchang, and the other is a young eunuch whom Zhu Houzhao doesn't know.

"The people sent by Dongchang are back and are about to report back. Let's listen to it together, father and son!" Zhu Youtang said when he saw Zhu Houzhao coming.

Zhu Houzhao glanced at his father's expression, neither sad nor happy. Obviously he didn't listen, Zhu Houzhao nodded and said: "Okay! I hope my son will lose."

Of course Zhu Youtang understood the meaning of his son's words, nodded in satisfaction, and then said: "My son has a heart, but it is what it is, and some things will not follow people's hopes and ideas!" Youtang turned to Yang Peng and said, "Okay, let's talk about it!"

"Yes, Your Majesty!" Yang Peng quickly bowed and said, "After getting this errand, the maid asked Yang Lian to take her to the south of the Yangtze River."

Zhu Houzhao glanced at the young man behind Yang Peng. This should be Yang Lian, right?Speaking of which, this name is really awesome. He made Zhu Houzhao call out another name, that is Yang Lianting.

"After Yang Lian came back, the servant didn't ask, but just brought him into the palace." Yang Peng stood aside after saying this.

Glancing at Yang Peng, Zhu Houzhao smiled, this Yang Peng was not bad, turned his head to look at his father, seeing that he was calm, Zhu Houzhao also turned his head back.Yang Peng was probably lying about this matter, anyway, only he and Yang Lian knew about it, but Zhu Houzhao felt that it was unlikely because it was unnecessary.

"Then let Yang Lian talk about it!" Zhu Youtang glanced at Yang Lian, and then said slowly.

"My lord, Your Highness the Crown Prince, the slaves and servants went to Shanyang at the first stop, because Lord Ye Qiye is from Shanyang County, Huai'an Prefecture. Shanyang County has been an important place for transportation on the Grand Canal since ancient times, so Shanyang trade is prosperous. A large number of merchants gathered here, and the most numerous merchants here are Xin’an merchants.”

Hearing Yang Lian's words, Zhu Houzhao sighed. He was indeed a Huizhou merchant. Many people in later generations thought that Huizhou merchants referred to Anhui merchants, but they were not.

In this era, there is no such place as Anhui, only Huizhou. Huizhou merchants refer to the general name of merchants or merchant groups from the old Huizhou prefecture, not all merchants from Anhui.

Zhu Houzhao remembers very clearly that Huizhou merchants developed vigorously in this era. Huizhou is located at the "end of Wu and Chu", which is a marginal area with high mountains and dense forests, and the terrain is changeable, so the development was relatively late.Before the Han Dynasty, the population was small, but at the end of the Jin Dynasty, the end of the Song Dynasty, the end of the Tang Dynasty and three immigration waves in Chinese history, a large number of people migrated from the north to Huizhou in southern Anhui.With a large population, many mountains and little land, what should we do?Doing business abroad is a way out.

Huizhou merchants have existed since the Han and Tang Dynasties, and their strength increased greatly in the Song Dynasty. In the Song Dynasty, Huizhou paper had been exported to Sichuan.Huizhou merchants with huge sums of money began to appear in the Southern Song Dynasty. The Qimen brothers Cheng Chengjin and Cheng Chenghai became rich through business.The shops and inns run by Zhu Xi's grandfather Zhu Que accounted for half of Huizhou, known as "Zhu Banzhou".Some large businessmen with strong capital also issued "huizi" in Huizhou.

Although Huizhou merchants were quite powerful before this era, they were far inferior to Shanxi merchants. You must know that when Huizhou merchants were at their peak, they accounted for four-sevenths of the country's total economic output, which shows their strength.

When did Huizhou merchants develop?It was at this time that Huizhou merchants began to develop rapidly. How did they develop?After entering the Ming Dynasty's salt industry, why can it develop?Because of the Lianghuai Salt Fields.Relying on the Lianghuai saltworks, Huizhou merchants recklessly grabbed profits and became a huge business gang.

(End of this chapter)